Photographs courtesy of @homesteadbrooklyn unless otherwise noted.
The first time we visited Summer Rayne Oakes in 2013, the wellness author and houseplant enthusiast was living in Brooklyn with more plants than we’d ever seen in a 1,200-square-foot apartment.
Oakes has lived in her 1,200-square-foot industrial “plant pad” in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood for more than 12 years.
Summer Rayne Oakes: I’ve learned from my plants, that in order to grow, you need to seek out the sunlight—even if it means having to stretch or contort yourself to get it.
Nearly every corner and open space, including her work area, is inhabited by a plant.
East will give you very good light throughout the day, which will allow you to grow a range of plants; and west will give you some indirect, ambient light and some sunset, which may be better for lower-light tolerant plants.
Books and ferns happily co-exist. Some plants that do rather well under typical LED or fluorescent lights include Chinese evergreens (Aglaonema sp.
Oakes’ evolving potted succulent and cacti collection. If you’re not, then look for ones that can thrive with a little benign neglect.
In Oakes’ kitchen, potted herbs in jars, on supports she built with her father, take center stage. SRO: I’d typically say trees that you’d see in the northeast, like oak or maple.
Over the years many of Oakes’ herbs and edible plants have found a home near the kitchen window. Other plants can get too much sun, particularly in the heat of summer, so I will occasionally move them back for fear their leaves would get bleached.
An orange wall in the living area offers a vibrant contrast to all the green. SRO: I’ve installed a 150-foot expandable hose, which is attached to a pipe of my kitchen sinks, which has reduced watering time dramatically.
Potted plants mounted in wall shelves. However, I have a lot of Euphorbias and other slow growers and I would venture to guess they are far older.
Photo by Joey L.
A woman and her plants. Oakes has a degree in environmental science and entomology from Cornell University. GD: Were you born with a green thumb?